Podcast: Robert Popeo, counsel to Speaker DeLeo, lashes out at government accusations in ‘O’Brien’

R. Robert Popeo has represented House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo every step of the way in the investigation of the Probation Department’s hiring practices.

Though DeLeo is not charged with a crime or listed as a witness in the racketeering trial of former Probation Commissioner John J. O’Brien and two of his deputies, the speaker’s name has come up frequently. On July 7, prosecutors told U.S. District Court Judge William G. Young that they planned to present testimony from legislators that a quid pro quo deal existed in which candidates whom DeLeo supported for Probation jobs would be hired in exchange for legislative favors.

In a 15-minute podcast with Lawyers Weekly, Popeo – chairman of Mintz Levin – said he was “stunned” to hear what he described as the government’s “scurrilous” allegations against his client.

The Boston lawyer has represented DeLeo for more than four years and says the grand jury found absolutely no criminal wrongdoing on his client’s part. Popeo says he received a call at that time from the chief of the political corruption unit at the U.S. Attorney’s Office telling him that there would be no action taken against DeLeo.

Even if the government has changed its mind and now believes a crime was committed, Popeo says, the statute of limitations has long expired.

“There [is] nothing that could be done,” Popeo says. “But there [is] nothing that should be done, because there was no violation of federal criminal law.”

Popeo also notes that no member of the Legislature can honestly testify that jobs were traded for votes.

“Interestingly, [the prosecution] obviously didn’t want to hear from [the speaker] because he’s not on the witness list,” Popeo says. “To allege in a way that defames DeLeo that there is quid pro quo or a scheme to swap jobs for votes is ludicrous.”